


Architects of Our Reality

by Aaskada



Series: Nine Gates Among the Reeds [2]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, Naruto
Genre: Minor spoilers for the main story, world-building
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-18
Updated: 2020-10-31
Packaged: 2021-03-09 04:14:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 1,386
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27088435
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aaskada/pseuds/Aaskada
Summary: Bits of world-building and commentary for From the Ashes
Series: Nine Gates Among the Reeds [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1977106
Comments: 3
Kudos: 13





	1. Nwt the Owl

**Author's Note:**

> This is not going to be getting as many tags as From the Ashes since it's not a standalone thing. I figure anyone who wants to see it will have gotten here by way of the series tag.

Hedwig is a lovely name, but, let's be honest, it isn't one _Akhenra_ would have chosen. Canon Harry picked this name out of a history book and given the character I'm writing in his place FtA!Harry 1) would not likely name his owl after a historical figure who is, from his perspective, much younger than him 2) would be inclined to choose an Egyptian or Hebrew name and 3) the patron saint of orphans wouldn't mean the same thing to him. He's learned to let go of people when they die or leave and he never knew James and Lily anyway.

From there Nwt was the first name to come into my head and the plotbunnies refused to consider anything else.

Nwt is most commonly transliterated as Nut, but has also been written Nunut, Nent, or Nuit. Egyptian like many other Afro-Asiatic languages omits vowels in the written language, so no one knows how it should actually be pronounced. She is the goddess of the sky, stars, cosmos, astronomy the universe, and mothers; her identifying symbols include a water pot and cows although she is also frequently depicted as a woman or pair of wings covering the sky. On sarcophagi, a pair of wings that take up an entire row of hieroglyphics is often representative of Nwt. Her children include some of the more well-known gods: Osiris, Isis, Nephthys, Horus, and Set.

According to legend Ra was paranoid that he would lose his throne and when he discovered Nwt was pregnant he declared she would not give birth any day of the year. At the time the year was only 360 days. She conspired with Thoth, who wagered with Khonsu for some of his moonlight until he had enough to make five more days. Since these five days were not part of the year she was able to have her children.

Nwt being loosely associated with water and at odds with Ra make it a bit of an odd choice for someone strongly aligned with fire who considers himself a priest of Ra, but it still seemed appropriate for reasons I can't quite manage to articulate. Also, the Egyptian gods don't hold grudges the same way as other pantheons. The climate and the cycle of the seasons were consistent and generally forgiving and as a result their gods were too. Even Set wasn't unreasonable so much as unpredictable and Sehkmet calmed down pretty fast. I can't imagine Ra would hold the name against him.


	2. The Phoenix Contract

Something that hasn't been stated and got glossed over a bit, since we skipped from Egypt straight to the start of Harry Potter canon, is that Akhenra/Madara doesn't have to sign the phoenix contract again in every life. Summoning contracts are signed in blood, but I'm taking some liberties with why that is.

Instead of the contract using the blood as the identifier for who the summoner is, the blood is actually being used as a convenient source of power to create the connection. I can't remember from the Fourth Shinobi War whether or not any of the resurrected people who had summoning contracts actually used them, but I've decided they could have. Death does not break the contract. What _would_ result in the contract defaulting is for the summoner to no longer be identifiable by the name they summoned the contract with. Amnesia or a name change wouldn't be enough to fulfill that condition. There are a few ways this can happen. One way that happens with some frequency—if not necessarily to summoners—is giving or trading a name to a fey. The most common method is rebirth.

Since Akhenra has the serial reincarnation thing going for him, he regains the ability to summon the phoenix and they in turn the ability to feel his presence and where he is when he is old enough to remember his previous lives properly. One of the results of this is that they know when he is reborn because the contract goes defunct for a few years. Also worth noting is that they might be able to get a general sense of where he is, but that isn't enough to be able to teleport themselves directly to his side without being summoned.


	3. The Cursed Scar

The scar is faded! There's a few things going on here:

  1. I have not entirely decided yet why he actually survived the killing curse. Despite the improvised ritual Lily pulls off before she dies, all that really would have done on its own is kill Voldemort for killing Harry and defaulting on his side of the "agreement." He didn't properly manage to kill Harry, so the magic only backfired on him a bit instead of making sure he properly died. Given that canon Harry survives I'm inclined to make it something related to his fey ancestry rather than the phoenix contract or attendant training. Still: at this point, I haven't decided on the details.

  2. Phoenixes lean a bit more metaphysical than physical in the details of their concrete existence. This is a trait shared to some degree by most magical races no matter how intelligent. As a summons clan this is particularly distinct. Like other summons clans they are effectively the spirit version of an animal. Wild phoenixes that might be found or those who are familiars to the Dumbledores are not quite as smart or powerful, but they can sense the ghost of the contract Akhenra holds and are more likely to like him because of it.

  3. Related to point two: phoenixes are _healers_. In combination with their status as spirit beings I'm saying they are totally capable of removing a horcrux without causing damage to its vessel, although if it had gotten hooks into Akhenra's magic or soul it would have been very, very difficult.

  4. Not to mention they are strongly associated with the Egyptian temples and therefore the priests of Horus who initially created this form of phylactery that dark wizards bastardized. In some stories Ra and Horus are one god, Re-Harakty, so they know some things.




So the scar is faded, but not gone because cursed scars never completely go away. Even with phoenix healing.


	4. The Board of Governors

The Hogwarts Board of Governors were formed in 1376 to act as a bridge between the Wizengamot and the school. At that point only Slytherin and Hufflepuff had known heirs, but seats were set aside for all four founding Houses regardless as well as a seat set aside for House Pendragon that had been defunct for nearly eight centuries. The Board of Directors are responsible for appointing or dismissing the headmaster and may make decisions about curriculum and faculty if they believe the headmaster is not doing their job satisfactorily. A super majority is required to pass any motion, but this doesn't account for unused seats. There are twenty five seats on the board as follows:

Headmaster: Self-explanatory, whoever is the current "Lord" of the school holds this position on the Board of Governors.

Deputy Headmaster: Same as the headmaster, they are the "Heir-Lord" of Hogwarts and most commonly will vote the same way as the headmaster regardless of ideological differences. If the headmaster is dismissed or dies their deputy becomes acting headmaster, but must be confirmed by the board to officially take the title.

Founder Lords: Seats set aside for the heirs of the four founders. Currently all four seats have come to be empty.

Albion Lords: Seats set aside for the magical Houses that once served in the Pendragon royal court, including a symbolic seat for House Pendragon. These Houses are Peverell, Black, Longbottom, Fallohide, and Pendragon.

Later Lords: Seats for magical Houses that gained noble status between the fall of House Pendragon and the founding of the Board of Governors. These Houses are Wyllt, Ambrosius, Lucine, and Lestrange.

Regent Lords: Five seats for British Lords of House not qualified for the previous positions that serve in seven year terms. In 1991 these seats are held by Houses Malfoy, Llewellyn, MacLeod, Pendleton, and Bryant.

The Commons: Five seats set aside for non-Lords who have reason to sit on the Board of Governors, filled by appointment. Typically these seats are filled by the Director of Magical Education, the Director of Muggle Relations, the Director of Magical Welfare, a records clerk for the Ministry, and a representative from the DMLE.


End file.
